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Friday, August 27, 2010

Starbucks' "Pledge to Do Some Green" Campaign

Just stumbled across the new Starbucks Canada marketing campaign, and I think it has a lot going for it.

Here’s how it works: You log on to the Starbucks Canada's Facebook page, “PLEDGE TO DO SOME GREEN”, and get rewarded with a free tall cup of Pike Place Roast coffee. Sounds pretty good, right?

To redeem your coffee, you need to fill out a pledge form outlining what act of green you’re planning to carry out for your community. These range from using a reusable mug every time you visit Starbucks, to planting a children’s garden, to donating to the partner charity, Evergreen. After submitting the form, you’ll get an e-mail coupon for your coffee. It’s a great idea for Starbucks to give away a cup of coffee this way rather than just handing them out in stores. Every pledge form filled out contains a customer’s address, and other personal information. To the person filling out a pledge form, it’s 2 minutes work for a free coffee. To Starbucks, this campaign will create a valuable source of demographic information. My guess is that if x number of people in your now Starbucks-starved neighbourhood are taking the time to fill out this pledge form, you can expect a new café springing up sometime soon. Also, I’m sure a lot of people redeeming their coupons for a free tall coffee are going to splurge on one of those pizza-size cookies or the signature lemon cakes. And I can’t blame them, that stuff’s delicious.

Starbucks is moving marketing dollars onto social media (much like Pepsi and other major corporations), focusing on green marketing, and including a free giveaway. All smart moves! I also like that that the company has partnered with a Canadian charity, Evergreen, in rolling out this campaign. If the national angle wasn’t enough, they’re encouraging you to get involved in doing green in your community. It’s a good idea for Starbucks to get its Canadian customers thinking they’re doing good in Canada and in your own neighbourhood. It’s a stretch to think people will start identifying Starbucks as a local coffee shop rather than the international megalith it is, but I think this initiative and others like it could get Starbucks a little more credibility with the “I live green and shop locally” crowd. Note: Those guys drink a lot of coffee.

And imagine the future advertising opportunities that this campaign produces: The amount that Starbucks manages to raise for Evergreen will be impressive. I’m sure there will be tree plantings and community beautifications inspired by this, and that certainly creates buzz.